Stronger
by Copper's Mama
Summary: a lamb/veronica fic ... or DoVe if you prefer ... taken from the episode where they finally catch the rapist! only this time, lamb is there! rated t for now, might change to m later. please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

_..._

_A Lamb/Veronica fic._

_..._

_Disclaimer: I may own seasons 1-3 on dvd, but alas, I don't own Veronica Mars. If I did, they would not have killed off Don Lamb, they would simply have him shirtless more often. _

_..._

_A/N: okay, so I was just cruising the different pairings on the fanfic list, and thought I'd see if anyone made any Lamb/Veronica fics, and ended up finding quite a few, and absolutely fell in love with this pairing. So, I thought I'd take a crack at it. _

_This will take place in season three, when she's at Hearst, and legal and everything. _

_Takes place during the episode where they finally catch the rapist, with my own twists. _

_Okay, enough out of me, and on with the story!_

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback!_

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It had been a long night. A very long night. Sheriff Don Lamb had been patrolling the dorms of Hearst college all night. Veronica had called him, telling him that she was sure the rapist would take another victim tonight, she just didn't know who, and he should be on the lookout.

He had told her he had real police work to do, and hung up on her. Though, as much as he hated to admit she was right, his own conscience wouldn't let him stay away from the college tonight.

He was about the leave the building he was currently in, making his way out the door to the next one, when he heard a sharp whistle.

For a moment he paused, waiting for the sound to happen again, but it didn't. He was about to leave once more, when he remembered one of his deputy's telling him something about the "rape whistles" the college was supplying, and he burst into action.

He pulled out his gun, moving down the hallway, listening intently for any sound that would tell him where the victim was.

Then he heard a door open, and a familiar face walked out. Someone he'd arrested before. Someeone who _had _to be involved.

He raised his gun, pointing it at the younger man.

"Sheriff, what's this about?" Mercer asked, nervously looking back towards the room he'd just left.

"I think you know exactly what this is about," Lamb said, moving towards him slowly, the gun still trained on Mercer. "What's in the room?"

Mercer looked back towards the room once before he suddenly dove for the door handle, and got the door closed and locked before Lamb could reach him.

He pounded on the door, trying to shoulder it open once, but it didn't budge.

"Open the door, or I'll shoot it down!" he shouted through the door, and he was now starting to get an audience.

He motioned for everyone to be silent, and tried to hear what was going on in the room. He could hear at least two male voices, bodies shuffling around, and then a distant moaning, an unmistakable female voice.

_Dammit._

He shouldered the door once more, trying to get it to budge, but it wouldn't.

He then heard Mercer speak from inside the room.

"You're of no further use to us, Veronica Mars. Time to say goodnight."

"No," he said forcefully, paying no attention to the group of people behind him. "Not Veronica. Not like this," he said.

Backing up slightly, he took aim, right above the door handle, and aimed one hard, powerful, angry kick at the door. Adrenaline was his friend.

The door burst open, just in time for him to see Mercer about to attack a near-unconscious Veronica with a hammer.

"Stop!" Lamb said, but Mercer started to swing the hammer at her head, and Lamb double-tapped him in the chest, watching the surprised look on his face as he fell back.

The other guy in the room held his hands in the air, backing up against the wall.

"I need some help in here!" Lamb yelled out to the people in the hall. A blonde girl rushed in.

"Oh my god, Veronica! Is she okay?" Parker asked.

Slightly relieved that she was a friend of Veronica's, he handed her his handcuffs.

"Put these on him," he said, motioning to the guy against the wall.

As she did as she was told, slightly more forcefully than necessary, Lamb gathered Veronica into his arms.

"Veronica? Veronica, wake up," he said, shaking her lightly.

"The girl," she mumbled, and he almost cried, he was so relieved to see she was okay, for now at least.

"What girl?" he asked.

She told him about the girl she put in her closet before she hid in the bed, waiting to surprise the rapist. How she'd tasered him, and stabbed him with a unicorn toy, then made her way here, only to be drugged again by the other guy in the room, and she'd hid in the closet and hit him with the hammer when they came after her.

_This girl would fight 'till her dying breath,_ he thought, cradling her softly.

"Everything's going to be okay, Veronica," he promised, scared for the tiny thing in his arms. Without really knowing he was doing it, he kissed the top of her head, and the action was not missed by Parker.

"I'll uh, call 911?" she offered.

He nodded as Campus Security made their way into the dorm.

Ignoring them, he lifted Veronica in his arms, leaving the room, paying no attention to the stares and whispers of the students in the hallway.

"Do you need help getting her to the hospital?" Parker asked, catching up with him.

He shook his head, but said, "Call her friends, tell them what happened. Do you know her Dad's number?"

"I can get it," she said, knowing Mac would have it.

"Call him too, tell him to meet us at the hospital," he said, and then left the building with a now unconscious Veronica in his arms.

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The hospital waiting room was a circus. Keith Mars had been allowed to see his daughter, and Don Lamb was still filling out his report at the nurse's station, but everyone else was still forced to wait behind.

Parker, Mac, Logan, Dick, Wallace, Piz, and Weevil were all moving around the waiting room, dying for answers.

Wallace and Piz felt like shit. They had been at the party, and they hadn't saved her. They had let her go off, not even considering the possibility that she might get trapped by the rapist.

Weevil and Logan looked ready to kill someone. It was entirely possible they were planning a murder together, just to relieve their current stress. _How much security can there possibly be for a jail cell?_ they thought, thinking of the second guy involved in the rape. Parker had filled them in as best as she could.

Parker and Mac were comforting each other, scared for their friend, wishing they'd gone with her to that girl's dorm, Parker wishing she'd remembered more about her rape, so that she could have identified Mercer better. And sooner.

Dick just sort of hang around, offering his support to Logan. Because really, Logan was the reason he was here. He hated what had happened to Veronica, but there was nothing he could do about that, he knew that, but he could be there for his best friend. So he was.

Finishing up his report and signing his name, he pocketed the paper and began to make his way back to Veronica's room, but he spotted the doctor and called him over.

"How is she?" he asked.

The doctor had the expression doctor's usually had when they were about to spew out a bunch of technical crap, so he put a hand up.

"Just give it to me straight, doc."

The older man nodded.

"Basically, she's lucky to be alive. The ammount of drugs that were in her system would have knocked out someone twice her size. She's a fighter, but odds are, she wouldn't have lasted much longer if you hadn't found her. We were worried at first that there might be internal bleeding, but we haven't been able to find anything to confirm that, and she hasn't been getting worse, so that's good. She had a dislocated shoulder, a concussion, two broken fingers, she's bruised and scraped over most of her body, and we had to pump her stomach and attach an IV to get the rest of the drugs out of her system. Luckily, though, we found no signs of sexual assault. She took one hell of a beating, but she should pull through. Like I said, she's extremely lucky to be alive."

Lamb nodded, trying to keep his emotions in check. "When will she be able to go home?"

"She has to stay overnight for observation, and she'll have to come back in a week to make sure there's no permanent damage, but other than that, she can go home tomorrow, as long as she stays rested."

Lamb nodded again. "Thank you doctor. I'll go tell her father."

The doctor nodded and walked away, and Lamb ran his hands over his face, sighing deeply before going to talk to Keith.

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"But, she's gonna be okay?" Keith asked.

Lamb nodded. "According to the doctor, as long as she stays rested, she should make a full recovery. She's tough ... I mean, come on Keith, she is your daughter. No way she gives up easy."

His old mentor nodded, tears in his eyes, and then before he could stop him, Keith was hugging him.

"Thank you for saving my daughter," Keith said, backing away.

Lamb didn't know what to say, other than, "Just doing my job."

Keith cracked a slight smile at the man he'd once hated, and saw a bit of the boy he used to know.

"Well, I'd better get going," Lamb said. "Gotta get this report to the station."

"Uh, actually would you mind sitting in here for a few minutes with her?" Keith asked. "I need to find a bathroom and a coffee machine, and I just don't want her to be alone."

Lamb nodded. "Of course."

Keith patted the man's shoulder as he left the room, and Lamb took the empty seat beside Veronica's bed.

He looked down at the broken girl sleeping in the bed, not believing it was really Veronica. Sure, he'd seen her in trouble before, heard of her run-ins with the Fitzpatrick's ... but this was different. She could have died tonight, and he didn't know what he would have done without ...

He took in her marred form, saddened. A large welt above one of her eyes, no doubt from that scum Mercer hitting her. A cut beside her eye, and one on her lip another bruise on her chin, down to her arm, which was held in a sling, to the other one, bruised, with finger casts covering two fingers on her right hand. Ice packs covered her legs, as well as a cold towl behind her neck, so that she wouldn't overheat.

"Oh, Veronica," he said quietly, covering her wrist with his hand, "what were you thinking?"

He leaned his head against the side of her bed, and almost didn't hear her small voice say, "I probably wasn't."

His head snapped up, and he sniffed slightly, blinking away the tears that had begun to form.

"Hey," he said.

She smiled, then winced at the pain. "Hey."

"Would it be cliche if I said you gave us all quite a scare?" Lamb wondered.

"Probably." She blinked her eyes a few times, trying to adjust to the light of the room, but then her eyes opened wide.

"The girl! She ... her closet ... did you find her?"

Veronica tried to sit up, but he put a hand on her slightly less injured shoulder and leaned her back down.

"Campus Police found her, brought her in. She's fine, thanks to you."

Veronica nodded, then winced again. "I have a headache."

Sheriff Lamb chucked at that. "That would be the concussion."

"Ah, yes, I thought I recognised that throbbing pain," Veronica joked, remember her days from playing soccer, and getting beaned in the head with the ball.

"So, uh, do you remember anything?" he asked her.

She replayed as much of the night as she could. "It's gets pretty foggy after I was trapped in the room. I rememeber hiding in the closet, blowing the whistle, you shooting Mercer, and ..."

She trailed off, deciding against mentioning that she remembered him kissing her, as innocent as it had been. _I mean, it's not like it was a big deal, he was just worried, and all the adrenaline ... it's not like it meant anything, right? _

"And what?" Lamb wondered.

"And then waking up here, with you beside me," she said, trying her best to sound nonchalant.

He nodded once. "Yeah, you just missed your dad, he asked me to sit with you while he went to get some coffee. He didn't want you to be alone."

She looked at him with soft eyes. "Thanks."

He nodded again, and that's when he noticed he was still holding her wrist.

She looked down at their hands, and they were both quiet for a few seconds before he pulled his hand away, clasping both of his hands together and leaning forward in his seat.

"So, the doctor tells me you put up one hell of a fight," he said. "Kicked some serious ass."

"Well, you know me," she said, feeling sleep drawing her back in. "I'm just that awesome."

A few seconds later, and she was out.

"Yes, Veronica Mars," Sheriff Don Lamb said, "yes you are."

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_Okay, end of chapter one. What did you think? _

_Comments, suggestions, praise? ... Reviews reviews reviews! I love 'em!_

_Until next time ...!_


	2. Chapter 2

_..._

_A Lamb/Veronica fic. _

_Chapter Two. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: I still don't own Veronica Mars ... sigh. _

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for the speedy reviews! I was very surprised to get such fast reviews on both of my Veronica Mars fics, and giddy of course. I'm happy you're liking the story so far, I'll try not to disappoint. _

_Okay, so in the last chapter, Sheriff Don Lamb saved Veronica's life, shot and killed Mercer, and brought Veronica into the emergency room, where all of her friends and family waited to see if she was okay. _

_Caught up? Whoo hoo, on with the next chapter! _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback!_

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Keith Mars walked back into his daugther's room to see both occupants asleep, and noticing rather quickly that Don Lamb was holding his daughter's hand as she slept.

With a small smile on his face, he quietly exited the room, moving to the nurse's station nearby.

"I'm going to head down to the waiting room to talk to my daughter's friends," he told the nurse at the desk. "Would you mind making sure they're left alone for a while? I think they could both use the rest."

She nodded. "No problem Mr. Mars. We have your cell number incase there's a problem. We recommend you go home and get some sleep as well."

Keith gave her a short nod, then headed towards the elevator's, knowing it was very unlikely he'd be leaving his daughter at the hospital tonight, Sheriff bodyguard or not.

The scene he met when he found the waiting room was just as he expected. High tension, high voices, and not enough space.

"Lower your voices, this is a hospital," he said, getting their attention. He didn't need them fighting with each other right now.

"Mr. Mars, what happened? Is she okay?" Wallace asked.

He was bombarded with several questions like that, and put up both of his hands, silencing them all.

"How about I talk, and then you can ask me questions?"

They all nodded.

"Thank you." He sighed, then took another deep breath. "This is what I know: Veronica apparently discovered that the rapist on campus was Mercer Hayes. She found out who his next victim was, and got to her dorm before him, traded places with her under the covers. She attacked Mr Hayes, stabbed him in the leg with a unicorn horn, apparently, and was able to escape. She made her way to your dorm room," he motioned to Wallace and Piz, "but instead found a person named Moe Flater. He was Mr Hayes' accomplice, and was able to drug her before she realized who he was. Sheriff Lamb was in the right place at exactly the right time, heard the "rape whistle" go off, found Mr Hayes, and when he discovered they were going to kill Veronica, he shot and killed Mr Hayes, took Mr Flater into custody, and brought Veronica here. He saved her life."

Everyone except Parker and Piz looked surprised at this information.

"Right now, she's out of the woods, but she's taken a pretty horrible beating."

He didn't miss the shared look between Logan and Weevil. A look of pure hate, though surprisingly, not towards each other.

"Can we see her?" Mac asked, worried for her friend.

"Not yet. She's sleeping right now, and the doctor's say she needs her rest right now. With her injuries, and the amount of date-rape drug she was given, we don't want to put any strain on her emotionally right now. I'm not going to tell you to go home, because I know most of you wouldn't listen if I did. But you can't see her yet, she needs to rest."

He sighed, looking at the young people before him. "You're going to want to prepare yourselves. It's ... it's not the easiest sight, seeing someone like Veronica lying unconscious in a hospital bed, covered in so many wounds. Let me just say that if the Sheriff hadn't been forced to shoot Mr Hayes, I would have done it myself."

There was a nod of agreement throughout the room.

"So for now, all we can do is wait. And with that in mind, anyone interested in helping me find a bigger coffee machine?"

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Despite the protest from the rest of her body, Veronica opened her eyes. _Yep, still too bright,_ she thought, but blinked a few times anyway, getting used to the light.

The other downside to that, was that her eye was apparently swollen, and blinking hurt after a while.

She let out a groan of annoyance, reminding herself that the next time she took on a rapist, it would be a nice, fluffy, bunny-rapist.

"Veronica? You awake?" someone asked her.

Looking around, she noticed that along with her bed being propped up, instead of lying flat, there was a considerably larger amount of chairs in her room than there had been when she'd fallen asleep.

Turning head slightly to look beside her, she was disappointed to see that Lamb wasn't there, but she turned back to her friends.

"Hey," she said, her voice raspy.

Mac was quick to hold out a glass of water with a straw for her to drink out of.

"Not to self ... next time you get a dislocated shoulder and two broken fingers, make sure they're on the same side," Veronica joked as Mac had to hold the glass for her.

She noticed that none of her friends found that terribly amusing, and sighed. She hated having them see her like this ... weak, helpless, defenseless. Broken.

_Only in body, and that heals though. _

She looked around the room, noticing the rest of it was occupied with flowers, gift baskets, "get well" teddy bears, and a large, stuffed pony.

"What's all this?" she asked them.

Parker was the one to speak. "The entire campus heard that you found and stopped the rapist, that you saved his next victim. This is barely a chunk of your presents. Your dad has spent most of the morning getting stuff sent over to your house."

Veronica blushed at the gesture.

"Wow ... you mean a mass group of people all like me? What bizarro land did we walk into?" she joked again.

Wallace and Piz stepped forward, stopping in front of her. They looked so tormented, and Veronica didn't know why.

"Vee, we're so sorry," Wallace said. "We shouldn't have left you alone like that. It's our fault that this happened to you, we are so, so sorry."

Piz nodded, looking like he was about to cry.

Veronica shook her head, wincing at the pain in her neck.

"It's not your fault that Mercer was a rapist. It's not your fault that I chose to go after him. It's not your fault that you weren't in your room when I went there, and it's not your fault that I'm in this hospital bed. You did what I asked you to do, and that's all. Nothing to apologize for," she insisted. "Now come on, kiss me better," she said, pointing to her cheek with the hand not caught in a sling.

And so, in succession, all of her friends, including the girls and Weevil, walked forward and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

When it came to Logan, however, he stopped in front of her, cupping her face with his hand, mindful of the bruise around her eye.

She knew that he probably felt the guiltiest of all, breaking up with her the day she got attacked by a rapist, and he was about to speak when she opened her mouth and silenced him.

"Also not your fault," she said. "You were right, it wasn't working, and this is a shining example of what you didn't want to happen to me, but you couldn't have taken care of me last night. Because even if we were still together, you still would have gone after the first girl by yourself, and I still would have gone after Mercer by myself. So don't sweat it, Echolls. I don't blame you."

Logan smiled sadly at her, nodding once before leaning down and kissing her softly on the cheek.

He went and stood by Dick, who she hadn't noticed until now.

"Dick Casablancas, as I live and breathe," she commented, a small smile playing at the edges of her lips.

"Yep, that's me," he said, moving forwards. "Now none of that pansy-ass cheek stuff, I'm all tongue, baby."

Veronica was saved from what would have most likely been a slop-fest by Keith walking into the room.

"Hey, honey, you're awake," he said, walking up to her and kissing her forehead lightly. "I see you have some guests."

"Yep, lucky me," she said. "Hey, what time is it?"

"It's a little after three in the afternoon," her father answered.

"When do I get to go home?" she wondered.

"They want to keep you here a couple more hours, but assuming all is well, then we can leave," Keith told her.

Veronica nodded slowly, mindful of her neck.

"So, can I assume that rather large pony is from you?" she said, motioning to the gift closest to her bed.

Keith nodded, a smile on his face.

"Hehe ... well it's about time, Pa," she said, grinning up at him despite the pain.

"Anything for my sweetheart," he said. Turning towards the other in the room, he said, "Anyway, the nurse sent me in here to tell you guys you'll have to go back in the waiting room or something, they need to do a "check-up" on Veronica, so we have to scoot."

Veronica waved by to everyone with her right hand, and her dad kissed her forehead once more before leaving.

The nurse came in a minute later.

"Ah yes, I thought it was time for my cold stethoscope," Veronica said as the nurse helped her until her hospital gown.

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"This is just great," Veronica muttered under her breath, hiding in the bathroom.

She had insisted she could dress herself, and she had barely been able to get her underwear on. Now the nurse was way outside the room, and Veronica had no idea how she was going to be able to call Mac or Parker.

So ... she was hiding in the bathroom, perched on the toilet, almost completely naked.

"Well ... it doesn't have cable, but we've got water an a toilet ... I could last at least a week or so," she told herself. "Or until I run out of toilet paper."

"Anyone in here?" came a male voice from outside the bathroom.

"Um ... possibly," she replied.

"Veronica? Are you in the bathroom?"

Now she recognised the voice. Of course. Out of everyone it could have been, of course.

"Well, yeah," she said.

"Are you okay?" Lamb asked her through the door.

"Oh, just a clothing malfunction," she said.

"As in ...?"

She sighed. "I can't get them on."

There was silence on the other side of the door.

"I don't suppose you saw Mac or Parker out there?" she asked.

"No," he replied quietly.

"Of course not," she said. "Well, then I guess I'll see you later."

Lamb paused on the other side of the door, but the gentleman in him couldn't leave her just sitting in there, helpless. And he wasn't about to go running around the hospital, looking for a bunch of teenagers he didn't know.

"Veronica, I'm coming in," he said, and opened the door a fraction of an inch.

"It's fine, really, I can wait," she insisted, but he opened the door all the way, closing it again once he was inside.

He forced himself to look at her face, into her eyes, and no lower.

"Okay, so, uh ... what do you need help with?"

Veronica blushed a deep shade of red, favoring her injured shoulder. "Um, well, pants would be good."

"Okay," he said, and picked up her pants. He slid each of her legs in, then pulled them up her thighs. But he couldn't get them any further unless she stood up. Grabbing either of her arms wasn't an option, and she couldn't exactly squirm herself into standing position with her pants halfway up her legs, in such a cramped space.

Reprimanding himself internally for looking at her naked form, he latched his hands onto her hips, trying not to growl in anger at the rug-burn marks and bruises on her stomach the rapist had given her, and slowly, carefully, lifted her up as though she were made of feather. He finished sliding her pants up, then zipped and snapped them in place.

He turned her around even more carefully, so that her back was to him, and picked up her bra. He slid one strap over her injured shoulder first, then the other, careful not to move her too much, and clasped the bra in place, knowing he would never forget this moment, this image, for the rest of his life, and grateful it hadn't been more of a hassle getting the bra on her.

The shirt, however, was another story. The material was too tight, he couldn't get it on her without hurting her.

They stood there, trying to think of something she could wear for a shirt, when suddenly he took off his jacket.

"What are you doing?" she wondered, afraid to look behind her. Not afraid of him, but of what she might see.

"Getting you a shirt," he said, and took off his outer shirt, then his wife-beater underneath. Repeated the same steps as her bra, he slid in her injured arm/shoulder first, then the one with the broken fingers, and then he pulled the material over her head, grateful that it was big on her, so it didn't pull too much.

"Thanks," she said, turning around.

She blushed again, noticing that he hadn't pulled his shirt back on.

He was caught in a trance, taking in her attire, secretly loving the way his shirt looked on her. It was only until he made his way back up to her eyes that he realized she was still staring at him two. At his chest. At his naked chest.

"Uh, yeah, no problem," he said, pulling on his shirt, then his Sheriff's top.

He opened the bathroom door, stepping out, then helping her back to her bed when he noticed she was limping.

"Your foot too?" he wondered.

"Yeah, I think I sprained it when I was running to Wallace's room," she said, trying and failing to hoist herself back onto the bed.

"Here, let me," he said, and it wasn't as though he'd never carried her before, he'd just never felt so nervous about it.

She carefully put her right arm around his shoulder, and he lifted from her back and under her knees, then walked around the bed, setting her down.

"How's the arm?" he asked, pointing to the one that had been dislocated.

"Not great," she admitted. "It's more stiff now than sore, but if I move it too much it still hurts."

He nodded, grabbing the sling off the chair by her bed and retying it, slipping her arm inside.

_Wow ... for the arrogan jerk he's been the last year, he is amazingly kind and gentle right now,_ Veronica thought as he carefully pulled her hair out from under the sling, then letting her rest back against the pillows.

"Thanks," she said again.

He shrugged. "It's no problem. I'm sure that Echolls kid would have done it if he'd been here. I mean, it's kind of his job right."

"Huh?" she wondered absentmindedly, trying not to think about what it felt like when he carried her.

"I mean, as your boyfriend, it's kind of his job to ... you know ...?"

"Oh," she said. "Well, no, not really. I mean, not anymore."

He looked at her for a second, then understood. "Oh, sorry."

"It's okay, you didn't know." And just like that, she was 14 again. Chatting it up with Deputy Don Lamb.

He sat on the edge of her bed, and they reminisced about all the things they used to do before Lily's death, they talked about what had happened after, he apologized for everything that had happened with her father, and for not believing her when she'd told him she was raped.

"Hey, can I ask you a question?"

She looked over at him. He was now lying on the bed, on his side, holding his head up with one hand, tracing circles on her arm with the other.

"Shoot," she said.

"The uh, the night you were ... raped ... why did you come to me? I mean, after everything that happened, why didn't you go to your father instead?" he wanted to know.

She shook her head slowly. "It's stupid."

He gave her his puppy eyes, and she had to look away, though grinning slightly.

"Come on, Veronica, please? I just want to know."

Veronica sighed. "Well, I'm sure that you remember I had the biggest crush on you back then," she started, and he gaped at her.

"What?"

"No you didn't," he said. _I mean, you used to think I was cute, I knew that much, but I don't think you ever really 'liked' me..._ "I would have noticed. Plus, you were dating that Kane kid."

"Well, yeah, but I liked you before that. I don't know, say I was young and naive, but even after everything that happened with Lily's murder, and by the way Duncan and I were broken up then, and I went to that party to try to prove a point, but then everything happened, and I knew I couldn't tell my dad about it, and Lily was gone, and the only other person in the world that I trusted, looked up to even, was you. I wanted you to comfort me, and tell me everything was going to be okay, and that you were going to catch the son of a bitch who did that to me, but instead ..."

"I told you to go see the wizard," he finished, ashamed.

"Yeah, has anyone ever told you, that's kind of creepy?" Veronica added, trying to ease the mood.

He brought a hand up to her face, pulling a strand of blonde hair back behind her ear. "I can't apologize enough for what I did ... or didn't do, as the case may be. I don't know how I can make it up to you."

Veronica thought for a second. "How about ... dinner and a movie once a week?"

"What?"

She smiled. "That's my price. The cost of my eternal forgiveness. You and me, dinner and a movie, once a week. I miss my friend, and it would be a great way for us to catch up. So, what night works for you?"

He stared at her for a few more seconds, realising she was being serious.

"Uh ... how about thursdays?" he suggested.

She smiled. "Thursdays it is."

He smiled back at her, glancing at his watch.

"Oh, crap, I gotta go," he said, sliding off the bed.

"Oh, uh, okay," Veronica said. "Will you come by the house tomorrow?"

"Maybe," he said, giving her a small smile on his way out.

He'd been gone for a few seconds, and Veronica was smiling, happy that her relationship with the Dep- ... Sheriff, was getting put back together, when he came back through the door.

"Forget something?" she asked him.

He looked embarrassed. "Well, actually the reason I came down here ... I was supposed to see if you remembered anything else from last night?"

_The fact that even though I was pretty out of it, your lips on my skin felt amazing? _

"Uh, no, nothing to do with the rapist," she told him.

"Okay. See you tomorrow ... maybe."

Veronica smiled. "Bye."

No one noticed Logan standing by the door, around the corner, nor did they notice how long he'd been there, listening.

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_Okay, end of chapter two. _

_What did you think of that one? _

_Reviews, reviews, reviews!_


	3. Chapter 3

_..._

_A Lamb/Veronica fic._

_Chapter Three._

_..._

_Disclaimer: I still don't own Veronica Mars ... sigh._

_..._

_A/N: Thanks for the reviews so far guys! You rock! And just to answer a question, or more a concern, don't worry, I won't turn Logan into a bad guy. There might be some jealousy, but mostly just concern for Veronica, and regret that he broke up with her. I wish they'd gotten a 4th season, or even a bit longer season 3, 'cause they left things so unresolved, thinking they'd get another season ... grr. _

_Okay, so in the last chapter, Lamb helped Veronica get dressed, the two had a heart-to-heart, Veronica got to see her friends, and Logan and Veronica confirmed their break-up. _

_Now, I know that people reading the DoVe fic won't want many Logan scenes, but I promise it will all work out in the end, they are friends after all. Let's just say Logan's still looking out for her. But this will definitely be a DoVe fic ... _

_And yes, I know, I've been ignoring my other fics, but I can't write what I'm not in the mood for, and right now, this is my favorite!_

_So, enough out of me, and on with the story!_

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback!_

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"Easy, easy," Keith Mars said, helping her onto the couch.

"Yep ... got it, easy is the way," Veronica said, hissing as she hit a sore spot on her tailbone.

"Are you okay?" he asked, trying to arrange the pillows on the couch.

"Yeah, I will be," she insisted. "Thanks, Dad."

Keith grabbed a tv tray and set it up by the couch, putting remotes, water, and a bell.

She looked at him with an amused glint in her eyes. "Seriously, Dad? A bell?"

Keith smiled. "I am at your service. Just ring the bell, and I shall arrive."

"Can't I just holler 'Pa!'?" she wondered.  
"Not if you expect me to come," her father informed her.

"Gotcha."

Keith sat down next to his daughter. Veronica looked at him, and he was quiet for a few seconds.

She'd been expecting this. He hadn't had time to talk to her since everything had happened, and now that they were alone, she knew this would be the time for him to have his break down.

"If they had ... if I had lost you, I don't know what I would have done, Veronica."

She opened her mouth to speak, but he interrupted her.

"I don't want you doing this anymore, Veronica, it's too dangerous," Keith told her.

"Dad, it's dangerous for you too," she argued. "But I respect your decision to do your job."

"And the difference is, you're not my father. I'm supposed to look out for you, and I wasn't there!"

Not knowing what else to do, she opened the hand in the sling and motioned for him to hold it. He crouched down in front of her, grasping her hand tightly.

"Dad, I can't stop being who I am, and I won't. I didn't want this to happen, and I wish it hadn't happened, and all I can say is that in the future, I'll be more careful. I promise to call you before being bait for a rapist."

Her joke didn't go over well, by the look on her dad's face. "Veronica ..."

"Or, you know, I just won't be the bait at all," she said.

"Much better," Keith said, squeezing her hand before standing up and kissing her forehead.

There was a knock at the door, and Keith went to answer it.

"Ah, Mr. Fenell, good to see you," he said.

"Hey, Wallace," Veronica called from the couch.

"Hey, Vee," he greeted, plopping down on the couch beside her.

She looked from her father to her friend, then sighed.

"I'm not gonna get any alone time, am I?" she inquired.

Keith smiled. "Only when you're doing bathroom things."

Veronica groaned, but knowing her dad, the phrase 'resistance is futile' ran through her head at least once.

"I foresee a lot of time spent in the bathrooms in my future," Veronica mumbled, clicking on the tv with strategically placed thumb.

"Now, I have to go into the office for a few hours, but Wallace here is gonna hang out with you until his relief come. Have fun Sweetie," Keith said, smiling and ruffling her hair as he walked out the door.

Wallace looked over at Veronica with a tight smile on his face.

"What?"

He sighed. "Logan and Weevil got arrested."

"What? What for?" she wanted to know.

Wallace didn't answer at first.

"Wallace, why were Logan and Weevil arrested?"

Walllace said, "They got themselves arrested so they'd get into a cell alone with Moe."

"Oh, crap," she said. "Dammit."

"I know, but we couldn't stop them," he insisted. "I don't suppose you have another get out of jail free card?"

"I highly doubt it," she said. _Maybe the Sheriff and me are getting back to being friends, but no way he'd just let two of my friends out of jail because I asked him to._

Just then, however, her front door opened, and Logan and Weevil walked in.

"I thought you were in jail?" Veronica said.

"So did we, but the Sheriff must have taken a few too many happy pills. He let us go a half hour ago," Weevil explained.

She caught a look at his reddened and bruised knuckles, and noticed Logan's were the same.

"So, how's Moe?" she wondered.

"A little worse for wear, but I'm sure he'll pull through," Logan said, grabbing a couple bags of popcorn out of the cupboard and throwing them in the microwave. "So, what are we watching?"

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Veronica was the first to admit that watching her friends go out their way to make sure she didn't have to even move was fun, but the first time she had to go to the bathroom was not the most fun experience. In the end, she'd needed Logan's help to change into a tank top with a built-in bra and a pair of cotton pajama pants.

"Thanks," she said, thoroughly embarrassed.

"Hey, it's no problem," he insisted. "Besides, it's nothing I haven't seen before, right?"

Veronica rolled her eyes, but agreed with him. She looked around her room. "Wow, you guys really weren't kidding."

"About what?" he wondered.

She pointed to the numerous baskets and stuffed animals in her room.

"Yeah, what can I say, you're Miss Popularity now, everyone on campus knows your name, and it's only been a day," Logan told her.

"Wow," she said, overwhelmed.

"Oh, and Dick said to tell you that Chip Diller says 'sorry'."

"Really?"

Logan nodded. "I repeat, wow."

Going to the bathroom was also a fun experience, but one she handled on her own.

They made their way back to the couch slowly, with Veronica's sprained ankle and bruised tailbone slowing her down slightly.

"Hey, we're gonna head to the store, get some more junk food," Wallace said as he and Weevil headed out the door. "We'll be back in ten minutes or so."

"Okay, see you soon," Veronica called after them, sitting down on the couch again, trying to get comfortable. "Hey, Logan, can you get me a couple aspirin from the medicine cabinet?"

"Sure," he said, going into the bathroom and grabbing the bottle. He handed her two and and her water bottle. She had mastered the art of spraying the water into her mouth with surprising acuracy. After the first 6 tries, that is. _My philosophy: water dries, pop leaves a stain._

"Thanks," she said, tucking her water in beside her on the couch, hissing as she ended up moving one of her broken fingers.

"You okay?" he asked, sitting down beside her.

"Yeah, just a bit tender," she said.

She looked over at him, noticing she was starting to get more mobility in her neck. "So, the Sheriff just let you go?"

"Yeah, it was really weird. I dunno, maybe he decided the Moe had it coming to him."

"Maybe," Veronica agreed verbally, but internally, other thoughts were brewing.

"So, I couldn't help but notice that you and Sheriff were going a bit off-script at the hospital," Logan began.

"What?" her heart thumped into her chest, thinking Logan had somehow found out about the scene in the bathroom. "What do you mean?"

"You know, with the chatting, and the hanging out," he said. "You guys haven't really been bosom buddied in a while, I was just wondering what was up with that."

"Nothing was ... up. We were just talking," she said, giving him a strange look. "Why ... jealous?"

"Very," he admitted, smiling.

Veronica was comforted by the fact that they could still be friends after all this, even though there were still feelings there. _I think some part of me will always love Logan, and that's good._

"Good," she said, propping her feet up on the stool in front of the couch. "New movie?"

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Veronica ended up sleeping on the couch that night, and when she woke up, she saw her dad sprawled out on the floor in front of the couch. Shaking her head lightly, she got up slowly, favoring her sprained ankle, but careful not to disturb her sleeping father.

She was running water into her water bottle when the there was a light tapping on the door. Shutting off the water, she moved to the window and looked out the curtain.

She smiled softly, then opened the door carefully.

"Hey," she whispered, stepping out into the hallway. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh, well, first I wanted to bring you these," Lamb said, holding a pair of scrubs.

Veronica nudged the door open further, and he walked inside and placed them on the kitchen counter.

"And second?" Veronica wondered quietly.

"Well, I was just thinking ... since you'll probably still be injured on thursday, if you wanted to just do the dinner and movie at, uh, my place?"

Veronica resisted the urge to crack a grin, realizing how hard it must have been for him to 'ask her out'. "Yeah, that sounds good. I'll bring the movie, you cook the food ..."

"I'll order the food," he said, smiling.

Veronica nodded. "Sounds good."

"Okay, so I'll, uh, see you thursday, then," he said.

"See you thursday," she agreed.

He gave her a nervous wave, then backed up to the door.

He was fumbling with the door handle when she said, "Deputy?"

"Yeah?" he answered instinctively, then sighed when he realized she'd called him deputy. "Why do you call me that?"

She tilted her head slightly. "Because when you were a deputy, everything was still great and normal and stuff ... it's just a nice reminder. But I guess, I mean if it bothers you that much, I'll stop."

He opened the door, and began to leave the apartment, but then stopped, and said so quietly she almost didn't hear it, "I can be your deputy."

Veronica blushed in her smile, and Lamb left the apartment, closing the door behind him.

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_Okay, end of chapter three!_

_I hope you enjoyed it!_

_Don't be shy about leaving feedback!_

_Until next time ...!_


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